1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of infant blankets. More specifically, the present invention pertains to an infant blanket wrap that is specially tailored for use in an infant car seat carrier and may further be utilized with any general type of infant seat that may or may not employ separated leg regions.
The practice of wrapping an infant in a blanket is known as swaddling, which is an age old tradition that provides benefits for both the child and the caretaker. Swaddled infants allow for improved transportation and carriage of the child, while the wrapping prevents movement of the infant's limbs and risk of injury.
Swaddling has become a popular practice for caretakers in recent years, thanks in part to recent studies suggesting that wrapping infants in blankets helps babies both to fall asleep, and remain asleep. In addition, some studies suggest that swaddling lowers the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). The sudden increase in popularity has created a demand for and abundance of swaddling blankets in the marketplate. In the past, parents could use a standard square or diamond shaped blanket to swaddle their child. Today, parents are constantly traveling, requiring the use of an infant carrier seat to move their children. The modern infant carrier and car seat utilizes a five-point harness to secure a child, which places a securing strap between the legs of a child to prevent submarining during sudden movements or a automobile collision. This makes it impossible to use a standard blanket to wrap an infant in a carrier, since the crotch strap prevents an infant's legs from properly fitting inside the carrier.
Many swaddling blankets have been created for use with a five point harness, however their designs create additional problems. Several of these designs utilize a bifurcated or split leg portion that makes it difficult to insert an infant's legs properly into the blanket. Other designs attempt to work around this problem by making the bifurcated leg portion cover only the lower half of the infant's legs; however designs such as this do not completely cover the infant's torso.
The present invention improves upon infant blanket wraps with a bifurcated leg portion that are specially designed for use in an infant carrier. The device comprises an article of material with two flaps, a bifurcated leg portion that forms a pouch for each leg and a securing means for the upper terminal end of the leg portion. The bifurcated leg portion allows a parent to place a swaddled baby in an infant carrier without removing the blanket and disturbing the child. The device also includes a securing means for the bifurcated leg portion. This allows the leg portion to fold down for ease of entry into the blanket, and creates an extended tube portion that covers the infant's torso, keeping the infant completely covered.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Several devices have been disclosed in the art that create a specially designed blanket for wrapping an infant. Smith, U.S. Pat. No. 6,415,442 discloses an infant wrap having a quadrangular, generally bilaterally symmetrical sheet of fabric material, the sheet having a generally rectangular central region for covering the back side of an infant's torso, overlapping upper and lower flaps attached to first and second opposing sides. Also, U.S. Pat. No. 4,611,353 to Heidelise discloses an infant's garment having a sack portion adapted to receive the legs of an infant, and two flaps attached to the sack adapted to wrap around the infant's arms and overlap behind the body. While these devices are designed to wrap an infant, they do not have a bifurcated leg portion allowing for use in an infant seat carrier or safety seat.
Many devices are adapted to fit inside a five-point harness in an infant seat carrier. Hay, U.S. Pat. No. 5,950,261 discloses a blanket wrap tailored to mount to a car seat or infant carrier. Safety restraints at the support mount through the wrap to permit attachment of the straps to the infant or toddler prior to fitting the wrap to the infant. McEntire, U.S. Pat. No. 5,781,946 discloses a blanket for portable infant car seats comprising of a flat cross-shaped member, a strap located on each side of said mid section area, a leg pocket member, a slit at center of said leg pocket member, a central opening to accommodate shoulder-body strap locking devise, a storage pocket member, and a storage pocket closure member. These designs use specific holes and cutouts, allowing the safety harness to pass through the blanket. This requires opening the blanket when inserting or removing an infant from a carrier, which can potentially wake or disrupt a sleeping child.
Other designs in the prior art do not have a bifurcated leg portion to allow use in an infant carrier. Mohler, U.S. Pat. No. 5,046,204 discloses an article for wrapping an infant comprising a sheet of fabric material, having a generally triangular left-hand, a generally triangular right-hand side flap, first and second booties depending from lower regions of the sheet for receiving the feet of an infant resting along a vertical central region of the sheet, and a hood in upper regions of the sheet for receiving the head of the infant. The side flaps each have a sufficient sideward length to enable the flaps to wrap sidewardly over the infant when it is resting along the vertical center region of the sheet and to overlap one another by a substantial amount. Chancey, U.S. Pat. No. 6,757,922 discloses a bifurcated wrap-around covering. The covering is made to straddle a vertical obstruction in the crotch area of a child's seating structure and made to wrap a child's legs into leg compartments. Though these devices utilize bifurcated leg portions, the leg portions do not extend over the infant's torso, leading to gaps in the blanket that can make the child cold or allow movement, thereby defeating the purpose of the blanket and swaddling wrap.
The present invention utilizes a unique design that allows for use in an infant carrier, safety seat or infant car seat, and further covers the infant's body completely. By using a bifurcated leg design, the device will not interfere with the crotch strap of a five point harness in an infant carrier. The device also includes a securing means for the bifurcated leg portion, allowing for ease of entry when placing the infant in the blanket. Once the child is properly positioned, the securing means is secured, thereby completely covering the infant's torso. The design of the present invention substantially diverges in design elements from the prior art and consequently it is clear that there is a need in the art for an improvement to existing infant blanket wraps. In this regard the instant invention substantially fulfills these needs.